On Oct. 22, tenant leaders gathered to advocate for themselves as their home faces demolition. Members of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) and the 39th Street Tenants Association held an emergency press conference, asking the Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) to deny their landlord’s massive demolition and relocation plan.
The current landlord plans to demolish the homes, but the tenants are 11 households located at 1078-1086 W. 39th Street.
“People are very low-income. After relocation, if they’re stuck paying over $1,000 in rent, people will most likely be evicted. They’ll lose their homes because they won’t be able to pay. Right now, people on that property are paying as low as $600. You do not find that anywhere else anymore,” said Cindy Moran, a tenant in the building who is at risk of becoming homeless and also a member of ACCE and the Ferdinand Tenants Association.
“We all believe that housing is a human right. We all deserve to live in livable conditions and in healthy units, and we shouldn’t have to get everyone involved in order to get the bare minimum done.”
In a post-interview, after the press conference with Our Weekly, Cindy described years of inadequate repairs, reported harassment, repeated eviction notices, and stress affecting residents, including seniors and her disabled mother. Residents currently pay rent-controlled rents, some as low as $600; Cindy said relocation could leave low-income families unable to afford nearby housing and that she sees no fair resolution if the project proceeds.
Some residents have families who have lived there for decades and were born there. The current issues have persisted since the current owner purchased the property in 2017.
His relocation plan does not guarantee tenants the right to return at their current rent and does not provide the full relocation assistance required by the city’s Resident Protections Ordinance.
Alex Scott, attorney of California Center for Movement Legal Services, said: “We are demanding something very simple: that the City Planning Department rescind the approval of this development project. Under state law, the city should have secured guarantees from the owner, including a relocation plan and a right of first refusal for tenants in the new property, before approving the project. Those protections aren’t mentioned in the approval.”
He further added: “The city has absolutely failed these tenants in how they’ve been treated. It’s been shameful. They have dragged their feet and refused to enforce laws they’re supposed to enforce. The only solution here that would be equitable is to halt the demolition entirely and rescind the approval.”
Scott shared more in-depth details of the tenants’ journey dating back to 2017, noting that all tenants living there are part of the 39th Street Tenants Association. He said the current owner, Siamak Esteghball, purchased the property in 2017. Barabas, a luxury clothing company owned by Siamak Esteghball, achieved success after cartel boss El Chapo wore two shirts during a 2016 interview with Sean Penn. He also said that in addition to this brand, Esteghball owns multiple properties within a two-block radius. This includes an adjacent lot where he demolished a single-family home to build a two-story duplex, completing construction in 2020.
The LAHD serves as the primary city agency interacting with tenants and organizers like ACCE. LAHD is legally tasked with enforcing the Rent Stabilization Ordinance (LARSO) and administering the Ellis Act, which governs building demolitions and eviction authorizations. Additionally, its Code Enforcement division handles tenant repair complaints and maintains sole inspection authority over residential rental properties, including the 39th Street building.
From 2017-2024, multiple complaints have been made to LAHD and City Planning. The owner first served the tenants eviction notices in July 2023, according to Scott. These notices were later rescinded because LAHD found he had not complied with all Ellis Act requirements, Scott said
Scott shared that building owners typically use the Ellis Act to bypass housing laws and get tenants out, as there are loopholes for them to use through that piece of legislation against tenants. In short, the Ellis Act allows owners of rental properties to evict tenants when they intend to demolish a property.
Despite these broad regulatory powers, LAHD faces severe criticism for its failure to enforce the 2021 Tenant Anti-Harassment Ordinance (TAHO). Reports from Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE) and a July 2024 City Controller audit reveal that most of the over 24,000 filed complaints have resulted in no action. Of the first 11,00 cases, only 23 were referred to the City Attorney, resulting in only four minor fines. While the City Attorney filed its first TAHO lawsuit in July, funding remains inadequate as tenant organizers and Movement Legal attorneys continue to fight ongoing evictions.
Lead organizer with the Alliance of California for Community Empowerment (ACCE), Hassan Zuniga, explains that the issue reflects broader displacement and housing enforcement problems across Los Angeles.
“If people are out in the streets using their relocation money for a hotel room, it’s going to be gone. That’s what we’re afraid of here. That’s why we’re saying: do not displace people,” he said.
He continued, “Most of our folks are hardworking people living week by week, day by day.”
“Like Cindy said, ‘I want to stay.’ For many years they’ve been fighting, and they should have been fighting for eight years to be listened to. They shouldn’t have to rely on an organization like ACE or Movement Legal to defend them in an eviction that we know we can win,” he said. “For many years, the City Council offices, the mayor’s office, City Planning, the Planning Commission, and the Housing Department—and I can name more and more—all of them are always covering themselves.”
Using the Housing Crisis Act, Scott said they are focused on two requirements: the right of first refusal and the ACT’s relocation assistance requirements.
As of now, Scott said that although the city departments involved have their own autonomy, if Mayor Karen Bass stepped in and used her influence to help enforce housing laws in day-to-day functions, it could help tenants, since the departments operate under the mayor’s oversight.
